A Dark Birthday
by BearfootTruck
Summary: After inheriting his uncle's business - and a lot of debt - Sonic is faced with a new challenge: get birthday presents for Shadow and Rouge. Will he get them in time, or will the stakes consume him? Rated T for death, mild language, violence, attempted suicide and suggestive content
1. Prologue To Partying

**A/N: Hello, everybody! It's been a while, hasn't it? For those who have never met me before, I'm BearfootTruck, and I've been writing fanfic since 2012. However, I took a long hiatus because: 1. I couldn't figure out which direction to go with this one series I was working on, 2. I was (and still am) going through various personal issues, and most importantly, 3. I wanted to take some time to sharpen my writing skills.**

 **About that last point: from the time I finished my last fanfic to the present day, I've been taking a good look at my body of work, and I've found that a lot of them aren't as good as they could have been. In fact, I deleted a couple because they were utter crap. The rest I'm keeping up because I already spent a lot of time working on them and I'd hate to see my effort go down the drain. Mock them if you wish, but know this: nothing that you say or do can hurt me any worse than what I've been through in my entire life.**

 **On the bright side, I've had plenty of fun writing, and I find that that's what's really important.**

 **So, to the people I've never met before, and to my long-time followers: let's get the party train going!**

* * *

In the Kingdom of Mobius, it all began with a blade of grass.

To be precise, it began with several blades of grass.

Mobius was said to have the greenest grass on the planet. Furthermore, despite the amount of pollution in the planet's atmosphere, the country's air was generally agreed to be the cleanest. Couple that with the clear blue skies, and the Kingdom was voted by innumerable magazines, websites and other media as one of the best countries to live in.

Then, said blades of grass were ruffled by a fierce gust of wind, marked by a streak of blue. This streak was none other than Sonic the Hedgehog. Known the world over for his numerous crusades against evil, he usually spent his free time running around wherever he dang well pleased. Though the world around him became a blur like he was, he could still find his way around. Truly, this was heaven to him.

Sonic's journey took him to Azure Lake Zone, located in the eastern part of the country. The world's largest lake, Azure Lake was known for its crystal clear water and a few ruins on the southern tip. After taking a lap around the lake, the Blue Blur went to said ruins, where he found a large cabin sitting atop a hill not too far away. He knocked on the door.

"Come in!" said somebody on the other side.

Sonic entered the cabin. Standing before him was Miles "Tails" Prower, his best friend. Inside the cabin was a mix of old-school and new-school, with a few rugs, leather and chestnut furniture, and a bunch of electronics. Upon stepping foot inside, Sonic slipped on a bunch of mail and fell. When he hit the floor, he couldn't help but notice one piece of mail in particular. As if the Black Arms stamp wasn't already a giveaway, the sender's name was.

( _A letter from Shadow?_ ) thought Sonic. ( _Ah, probably one of his death threats again. Why doesn't that turkey just tell me in person?_ )

Tails went to help Sonic up, but the Blue Blur got to his feet by himself and gave a thumbs up. "And the man is A-OK!"

Tails had a frown on his face, which was unusual since he was usually so happy to see Sonic.

"Tails…what's wrong?"

"Sonic, I got a call from Acorn Hospital," said Tails. "It's about Uncle Chuck."

"Why, what happened to him?"

"I don't know how else to tell you…but…he has cancer."

"Wha…?" Sonic's mouth remained agape for a few seconds. "Why didn't ya tell me before!?"

"Well, you did have your watch communicator turned off…"

"Never mind that! How bad is it?"

"The doctor said it was terminal."

"So when's he gonna get out?"

"Sonic, you don't understand! 'Terminal' means that he's not gonna make it!"

"All right, now you're just jivin' me! I'm outta here!"

With that, Sonic sped out of the cabin.

* * *

Not long after, Sonic made it to Emerald City, the capital of Mobius. About half of the Mobian population lived here and its assorted suburbs. It had suffered a number of takeover attempts by Dr. Ivo "Eggman" Robotnik, all of which were repelled by Sonic. Since it was in the afternoon, there was an influx of people trying to get home from work. Despite the heavy traffic, Sonic managed to weave through everything and make it to Acorn Memorial Hospital. Like a number of establishments in the city, the hospital was named for the Royal Family. Inside, it was rather crowded. Ol' Blue charged through the front doors and up to the front desk.

"Welcome, Sonic!" said the receptionist, a gray goose. "Can I help you?"

"My Uncle Chuck's here!" replied Sonic. "What room is he in?"

"He's in Room 0301."

"Thanks, that's all I need to know!"

Sonic zoomed past a bunch of ambulance attendants and headed up to Room 0301, where Charles T. Hedgehog was located. Chuck was almost a spitting image of his nephew, but he was light blue and had a white mustache. By now, however, he'd lost much of his color and looked somewhat emaciated.

"Uncle Chuck!"

"Good to see ya, Sonny!" Chuck began coughing.

"I came as soon as I could! How are ya feelin'?"

"To be honest…I've seen better days."

"No kiddin'! Say Unc, I got a question…"

"Yes?"

"And don't jive me…"

"I won't."

 **"** Is it true that you ain't gonna make it?"

Chuck groaned. "Let me put it to ya this way: the priest has already given me the Last Rites, and I've made peace with my fate." Chuck coughed again.

Sonic turned his palms upwards. "So that's it? You're just gonna lay down and die!?"

"I never said that; I'm saying that I'm OK with death."

Sonic hung his head. "Well…if that's how ya want it…I guess I can't stop ya, huh?" He brought his head up again. "So riddle me this: what the heck happened to my parents?"

"Sonny, there's no good way to tell you this…but…your parents were assassinated." Chuck coughed again.

Sonic dropped his jaw. "WHA…!? But why?"

"There's a lot ya don't know about Jules and Bernie. They worked directly for King Max on special assignments. Even I don't know what they were working on. All I know is that they made quite a few enemies."

Sonic crossed his arms. "Heh, I wouldn't be surprised if it was Robuttnik's fault!"

"For years, I wanted to tell you that your parents died in a car accident, but I just couldn't bring myself to lie to ya. Now that I'm here, I figured it was only logical that ya knew the truth."

"Ah, thanks anyways…I guess. That reminds me…"

"Yes?"

"Unc, I'm sorry I didn't get to spend more time with ya. I guess in all my adventures, I lost sight of what was really important."

Chuck reached out and touched Sonic's arm. "Don't feel too bad about it. I'm happy that you found your true calling, and I'm very proud of ya."

"Thanks, man." Sonic cracked a weak smile.

"Oh, and Sonny…"

Sonic leaned closer. "Yeah?"

"I…

"Yeah?"

"I…"

"What is it?"

Chuck relinquished his hold on Sonic as his eyes closed. Sonic stayed by his side for as long as possible, but eventually, the heart rate monitor flatlined.

"Unc? UNC!" With tears forming in his eyes, Sonic shook Chuck."Come on, Unc, wake up! Please, don't do this to me, man! Please, wake up! Don't die! I'm beggin' ya! I'M BEGGIN' YA!"

Sonic stopped his pleading and instead laid his face down on Chuck's chest, crying. Because he had never experienced the loss of a family member in a long time, the hospital staff had to struggle to pry him away from his uncle.


	2. Profit and Loss

**A/N: I'm not exhorting anybody to read and review, but your feedback is appreciated! Also, I'd like to thank the one follower I've gotten so far!**

* * *

Two days later, a wake was held for Chuck, and not long after, the funeral came. In accordance with his will, a simple ceremony was held. To Sonic's surprise, a lot of people showed up to the funeral, where the Blue Blur was allowed to deliver a eulogy for him:

"My uncle, Charles Terrence Hedgehog, was one of the best uncles that anybody could ever ask for. Whether it was his brother Jules, his sister-in-law Bernadette, his late wife Martha, his workers, his friends, or me – his nephew – he never was a stranger.

Charles was no stranger to love. He knew the rules, and so did Martha. Once they got to know each other, a full commitment was what he was thinkin' of. A woman wouldn't have got this from any other guy. Though he was real shy, he just wanted to tell her how he was feelin'. He _had_ to make her understand, and she did. When the wedding bells stopped ringin', when the honeymoon was over, Charles never gave her up, let her down, ran around or deserted her. He did, however, make her cry, but he never said goodbye or told a lie and hurt her. He made the effort to let her know that she was loved.

Charles was no stranger to tragedy, either. The moment he was born, his life went down like it was written by Shakespeare: his parents died in a building fire, leavin' him to raise his younger brother Jules by himself. Even to his dying day, Charles wept. He often asked himself: 'Couldn't I, who opened the eyes of the blind, have caused that even _they_ shouldn't have died?' Throughout school, he was bullied just for bein' a so-called nerd. In his senior year, he survived a school shooting that took the life of his first girlfriend. Still, he had to keep on keepin' on because he knew the big wheel keeps on spinnin' around.

During the Great War, he enlisted in the Marines, where he flew a gunship, drove a tank and was put in charge of million-dollar equipment. He also witnessed more than a few friends die. The one that bothered him the most was when he was in a bar in some jerkwater town in the Roseinian Empire. Some kid with a shoeshine box came up to him and a friend sayin' 'shine, please, shine!' Charles said 'no', but the kid kept askin', so his friend finally said 'yeah'. Charles went to get a couple beers, the box was wired and his friend opened up the box…boom, gone! Charles would never forget seeing his friend lying there, screaming for help, all that stuff comin' out…he just wanted to go home!"

At this point, Sonic felt a heaving in his chest, feeling as though it could have been one of _his_ friends, and it took him every ounce of energy not to scream, throw note cards around and just go off on a tangent about how tragic and crappy life was. So, he took a deep breath and waited until the thunder passed.

"What really got to Charles, though, was gettin' hit by a drunk driver on his birthday one night. This happened a few months into his marriage, and his wife Martha was in the car with him. They just happened to be put in the same room together, and he remembered regaining consciousness just as his wife passed on. She was pregnant with their first child, too. When Jules and Bernadette died in a similar accident, he felt like he'd lost his whole world. He even wanted to kill himself. Were it not for a brown hedgehog named Sonny – me – he would never have wanted to keep on truckin'.

Yet for all his tragedies, Charles was no stranger to success. After the war, he used his Bonus to attend UAEC, where he got a Master's in Auto Tech. When he graduated, he founded his own heavy equipment repair shop. Suddenly, this so-called nerd was laughin' all the way to the bank. That's not to say he was a greedy penny-pincher. No, he paid his workers well, and he used a good chunk of his change to provide scholarships to guys just like him who wanted to get a leg up on the pile.

Although cancer took Charles from us too soon, it can never take away the memories he created, the laughs he shared, the stories he told, or the legacy he left behind for the world. Most importantly, it can never take away the love he had for everybody, and it inspired me to love, too."

After the eulogy, the mourners proceeded to the Roger Gilmour Cemetery, on the northwest side of the city. Just beholding how they had loved him made Ol' Blue want to cry even more, but he held it in as best as he could, even though it made his chest feel that much heavier.

"…Ashes to ashes, dust to dust," said the priest.

As the coffin was being lowered into the ground, members of the Royal Highlanders Band played "Amazing Grace" on the bagpipes, which made Sonic want to cry even more considering it was the first lullaby that anyone had ever sung to him. Still, he kept holding it in.

* * *

Finally, at the après-funeral party – which was being held at the Emerald City Ballroom – Sonic locked himself in the bathroom, where he let it all out. Concerned about how long he spent in there, Tails and Knuckles the Echidna went in after him.

"Sonic, are you OK in there?" asked Tails.

"Yeah, you've been in here for a while!" said Knuckles.

Sonic sniffled. "Don't worry, guys! Everything's mellow now! I'll be out in a jif!"

True to his word, Sonic emerged from the bathroom, using a piece of toilet paper for tissue.

"Anyways," said Sonic, "enough bein' sad! Let's paaaaaaaartay!"

Team Sonic ate, drank and pushed their worries aside for now. While Sonic would never forget Uncle Chuck's passing, he vowed not to let it get him down too much.

* * *

The next day, after breakfast, Sonic was watching an episode of _Emerald City Blue_ when he heard somebody knocking at the door. Thus, the Blue Blur paused the show and looked through the little peephole on the door. Standing there was a bluish-green walrus wearing a suit.

"Who's this?" asked Sonic.

"My name is Alan Schmidt," said the walrus.

"What brings ya here?"

"This is about your uncle."

"OK, come in!"

Sonic opened the door and let Schmidt in.

"Nice to meet ya, Al!" Sonic shook hands with Schmidt. "Come on, let's sit down."

Sonic led Schmidt over to the dinner table, where they sat next to each other.

"So, what about Uncle Chuck, then?"

"I was a very close friend of Charles," replied Schmidt. "He named me the executor of his will."

"So what's this got to do with me?"

"Being that you're his only living relative, Charles left the business to you before he died."

Sonic blinked. "He did _what_?"

Schmidt nodded. "That is right, you are now officially the owner of the Hedgehog Heavy Equipment Repair Facility."

Sonic pointed the palms of his hands towards Schmidt and shook his hands from side to side. "Whoa whoa, I can't be the owner of his garage! Besides, I don't know jack about runnin' a business!"

"But you are. That's what the will said."

"Well change it!"

"Sorry, but the decedent is the only party who is allowed to change the will."

"Who cares!? I don't wanna be the prez of his company!"

"I understand your reluctance to go through with this. However, a will is a legally-binding contract, and as such, I must follow it to the letter."

Sonic sighed. "OK, OK…ya got me. But I'm sellin' this business as soon as hedgehogly possible!"

"It is your business now, so you are allowed to do whatever you want with it."

"Gotcha. Now if you'll excuse me for a sec…"

Sonic hopped out of his chair and exited the cabin. A moment later, he returned with Tails.

"Who are you?" asked Tails.

"I am Alan Schmidt, accountant for the Hedgehog Heavy Equipment Repair Facility. Charles T. Hedgehog named me the executor of his will."

"Nice to meet you, Mr. Schmidt." Tails shook hands with Schmidt. "So…what did Chuck say?"

"He wanted Sonic to take over his business."

Tails turned to Sonic. "Sonic, that's great!"

"No it ain't!" said Sonic. "Tails, I can't be chained down like that! I mean, mellowin' out is good and all, but I gotta be able to choose when to mellow, ya know?"

"But Sonic, this was your uncle's livelihood! Part of the reason he left the business to you was because he cared about your future!"

"Future, schmuture! I'm already makin' a killin' killin' machines! I don't need to make one fixin' 'em up!"

Tails turned one of his palms up as if he was presenting something. "Think about it this way: you said that you were looking to get me a better workshop when you got the money, right?"

Sonic put a hand up to his chin. "Well…yeah…"

"Don't you understand? This repair shop just might be the key to my future!"

"I get what you're sayin', but this just ain't my bag. So, I'm sellin' the biz to you, Tails."

Tails raised his eyebrows. "To ME!?"

Sonic nodded. "Yep, that's the gist."

"But I don't know anything about running a business!"

"Come on! You're a flippin' genius, man! I'm sure you can figure this out by yourself!"

"But I'm a scientist, not a businessman!"

"So? Business is a science…right?"

Tails scratched his head. "Well…you're right…I guess. Still, I don't want to be the owner of the garage."

"Well, I don't wanna do it either!"

Tails recoiled slightly. "Please, don't yell at me!"

"Er…sorry about that."

"But if you don't wanna run the business, then who will?"

Sonic put his hand up to his chin and began tapping his foot. Tails posed some interesting questions, and while not a heavy thinker, the Blue Blur usually had an answer ready sooner or later. Given the way he snapped his fingers, it was sooner this time.

"What is it?" asked Tails.

"OK, here's what it is:" said Sonic. "Tails, you do your mechanical and science stuff. Al, you can run the joint while I'm out. I'll drop in to make sure everything's kosher. Can ya get to that?"

Tails gave a thumbs up. "You got it!"

"Actually, Charles taught me daily operations of the business," said Schmidt, "and prior to his death, he told me to give you a tour of the facility and instruct you as he instructed me."

Sonic shrugged. "OK, that's groovy, I suppose."

"Then let's not delay any further! Come along, you two."

* * *

Sonic and Tails accompanied Schmidt to his black Coupe de Ville and made off for the Hedgehog Heavy Equipment Repair Facility. Located on the west side of the city, it had been founded twenty years prior to Sonic's birth, and it stood out in the mess of factories, warehouses and R&D centers. Here, the latest push-button technologies mingled with old-school elbow grease. Metal burned, sparks flew, ratchets zinged, and nobody was required to bring a sledgehammer that they'd never, ever use.

When they got inside, Sonic and Tails marveled at the shop. While the Blue Blur was reminded of past adventures in Robotnik's installations, Tails was more interested in the machinery being repaired, including a GMC General and a CAT 980.

"Right this way, please," said Schmidt.

Sonic and Tails did as they were told. As they were being led around the place, workers couldn't help but look at the duo, smile and/or wave. Not everyone was familiar with Tails, but everyone was familiar with Sonic. Eventually, Sonic, Tails and Schmidt came to the office that once belonged to Chuck.

"…and here is your office," said Schmidt.

"All right, so where do we boogie from here?" asked Sonic.

"Come inside; I'll show you what else you need to know."

Thus, Schmidt led Sonic and Tails inside. The office had a big mahogany desk with a computer and a brass nameplate that said "CHARLES T. HEDGEHOG, OWNER". Behind the desk was a leather swivel chair. For employees, there were steel folding chairs. Dotting the walls were pictures of Chuck, Jules, Bernadette and/or Sonic, plus people that neither Sonic nor Tails recognized. Ol' Blue seated himself on the swivel chair, while Schmidt helped himself to one of the steel folding chairs.

"So…"

Schmidt began to point out random papers and binders on the desk, explaining what each one was. Sonic pretended to know what Schmidt was talking about, figuring that he could always do an internet search or call upon Tails if there were any problems.

"…Any questions?" asked Schmidt?"

Sonic placed his fist over his heart. "None whatsoever!"

"Good. Also, don't be afraid to come to Rocky if you need help."

Sonic tilted his head slightly. "Who's Rocky?"

"He has his own garage bay. I'm sure you two will get along nicely."

"I'm sure we will! Now if you'll excuse me, I gotta get up and get down! Check ya later!"

"Wait!" said Schmidt.

Sonic froze in place. "Yeah?"

"I forgot to mention; I have bad news…"

"Uh-oh…"

"Late in his life, Charles lost money on some bad investments. Because of this, he fell deep into debt, debt that you are now responsible for paying off."

"How deep are we talkin' here?"

"Your total comes to 10 million Mobiums"

Sonic gasped and fainted. Tails rushed to his side.

"Sonic, are you all right?"

Sonic groaned as he came to. "Oh yeah…I'm just copacetic. I mean, I love takin' on other people's debts. Nothing more cool than that."

Tails helped Sonic to his feet. "Don't worry; I'm sure we'll figure some way out of it."

"But I don't think we even have that many colors in the bank!"

"We can always check."

"You're right! Heck, why don't we do that right now…"

Sonic brought up his watch communicator and logged into the Bank of Mobius account that he and Tails shared. Between their checking and savings accounts, they had a grand total of M95780.34

"WHAT!? I coulda sworn we had more than this!"

"Well, we did spend a lot of money on that geothermal generator for our cabin," said Tails "and then there are the repair and maintenance costs for all our vehicles, our food budget…"

Sonic's jaw dropped. "Are you tellin' me that we spend THAT much money on food!? Holy crap, I'm gonna have to cut back on the chili dogs! Now if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna jam, Sam."


	3. The Dilemma With Dark

Sonic sped off on another one of his daily runs. Today, he decided to head south to Seaside Hill Zone. Big Blue decided that a little fun, sun and sand would ease his pain. For a while, nothing was going wrong.

Then, Sonic slammed into something black and red. The resulting collision threw him backwards, hurtling end over end, until he was stopped by a palm tree. Fortunately, he still had enough strength to roll away before a falling coconut hit him. Clambering to his feet, the Blue Blur dusted himself off and shook his head. Before he could proceed any further, the something that he had collided with was upon him.

"Good morning… _Sonic_."

"Good mornin' to ya too, Shadow! Mind me askin' why ya took time outta your busy day to almost kill me?"

Shadow the Hedgehog crossed his arms and briefly cocked his head sideways. "Hmph, I could ask the same thing of you. However, I'm going to spare you any further damage and instead bring you this announcement…"

Sonic smirked. "Go ahead…make my day."

"As you know, tomorrow is my birthday…and Rouge's birthday as well."

"Huh?"

Shortly after, a few neurons jogged Sonic's memory:

 _Upon stepping foot inside, Sonic slipped on a bunch of mail and fell. When he hit the floor, he couldn't help but notice one piece of mail in particular. As if the Black Arms stamp wasn't already a giveaway, the sender's name was._

 _(A letter from Shadow?) thought Sonic. (Ah, probably one of his death threats again. Why doesn't that turkey just tell me in person?)_

Sonic raised his eyebrows. "Ooooooooh." Then, he smiled. "Hey hey, congratulations!" He opened his arms and prepared to hug Shadow, but the Ultimate Life Form pushed him away.

"Spare me the celebratory gesture," said Shadow.

Sonic snarled.

"Well anyways, I gotta go," said Sonic. "I got business to attend to. Happy birthday!" He turned around, but Shadow grabbed him by the collar.

"Not so fast!" said Shadow. "Since it's my birthday, that means you have to get me a gift."

"What a load of crap! People get each other birthday gifts because they want to, not because they have to!"

"Listen here…"

Sonic broke free of Shadow's grip and grabbed him by his chest fur. "NO, you listen here! I just lost my uncle, and I'm NOT in the mood for your jive, ya dig!?"

Shadow pushed Sonic off of him. "I'm sorry to hear about your uncle, and I understand your pain, but know this: ever since I broke out of Prison Island, nobody – and I say NOBODY – has ever been kind enough to get me a single birthday gift. Therefore, I want everybody to get me one this year, and that includes you, you wretched worm."

Sonic threw his arms up. "FINE! I'll get your stupid birthday present, pal!"

"Would it kill you to calm down?"

"I dunno, would it kill ya not to hit me with your stupid surprise announcements?"

Shadow grabbed Sonic by the collar and jammed a Smith & Wesson Model 29 down his throat.

"You know, you're going the right way to have your brains decorating the landscape," said Shadow. "Now, I'm going to let you go, and when I do, you're not going to give me any more sass. Is that understood?"

Sonic nodded. "Uh-huh."

Shadow removed the .44 from Sonic's throat. "Good. Now, are you going to get me a present tomorrow?"

"Uh…yeah…sure…ain't no thang!"

"Hmph, barring your use of obsolete slang, I'll accept your answer."

Sonic gave a thumbs up. "Groovy! Check ya on the flip, Shad!"

With that, Sonic sped off.

* * *

Meanwhile, back at the shop, things were going pretty smoothly. Sonic rushed over to Tails, who was working on a jetpack.

"Tails…I got a big problem!"

"What is it?"

"OK, so I was out runnin' around and guess who I ran into?"

"Who?"

"Flippin' Shadow, that's who!"

"So?"

"So, he told me that tomorrow is his birthday and he threatened to cap me if I don't get him a gift!"

"I know." Tails turned around, revealing a pink lipstick mark on his cheek. "Rouge told me, too."

Sonic put his hands on his forehead. "Aw man, what are we gonna do!?"

Tails put down his tools and put his hands on Sonic's shoulders. "Sonic, you know Shadow and Rouge better than anyone else. I'm sure you'll think of a gift. Plus, Rouge said she'd wipe out your uncle's debts if you got her a really nice one. I'll even chip in for the gifts if it makes you feel any better!"

Sonic smiled. "Thanks, man, I really appreciate it!"

"You're welcome!"

"Now, all I need to…" Sonic snapped his fingers. "I got it! Just gimme a few Mobiums and I'll be back faster than you can say 'back in the groove'!"

"Sure thing!"

* * *

After receiving some dough from Tails, Sonic made a quick foray downtown and made good on his promise. Then, he led Tails to his office.

"Dig these babies!" Sonic opened up the containers with the gifts he intended to get for Shadow and Rouge – an AK-47 and a large diamond, respectively.

"Let me take a look…"

Tails picked up the AK first. Initially, he showed the same level of curiosity that he treated all machines with. Suddenly, he let out a loud gasp.

"Sonic, we can't give this rifle to Shadow!" said Tails.

"Why not?" asked Sonic.

"Look…"

Tails handed the rifle to Sonic and pointed to a spot on the left side of the receiver, just above the grip. Here, the word "HESSE" was engraved.

"So?" said Sonic.

"Haven't you heard?" asked Tails. "Hesse Arms is notorious for producing low-quality firearms!"

"Look on the bright side: it was cheap!"

Tails sighed.

"OK, OK, so maybe I shoulda read some reviews first!" said Sonic. "I'll go out and get another heater later! Right now, though, I think I'm gonna watch an episode of _Motor Squad_. You can keep doin' whatever it was you were doin'."

"OK."

Tails exited the office, while Sonic turned on the computer and fired up Firefox. Uncle Chuck really liked the news, which explained why the homepage was set to the website of the _Emerald City Herald_. He was about to log into his Netflix account when a certain headline caught his eye:

 **SEARCH FOR MISSING DIAMOND CONTINUES**

Upon opening the article, he was treated to a rather unwelcome sight: the diamond referred to – the Kranzkowski Diamond – was the exact same one that Sonic bought for Rouge the Bat. Being the hero type, Sonic grabbed it and headed for the nearest police station – Sector 37, to be precise. This was one of the cleaner houses in Emerald City – rather unusual for a sector in the western part, but still pretty normal given its proximity to clean industry. Behind the desk sat a golden eagle.

"Good afternoon, Sonic!" said the eagle. "Sorry about your uncle. What can I do for you today?"

"Remember that stolen diamond that they're lookin' for?" asked Sonic.

"What about it?"

Sonic produced the Kranzkowski Diamond. "Here it is!"

Officers took notice of Sonic's find and began cheering.

"Amazing!" exclaimed the eagle. "We've been looking all over for that! Where did you find it?"

"I bought it at Savers," said Sonic, "and let me tell ya, it wasn't cheap!"

"OK, we'll keep looking for the suspects. In the meantime, we'll also contact you if the owner of the diamond decides to issue a reward."

"That's keen! Call me at my uncle's shop, and if I ain't there, ask for Tails, OK?"  
"You got it!"

With that, Sonic left the station.

( _Guess I got some askin' around to do!_ )


	4. When In Doubt

Even though he knew Shadow and Rouge very well, Sonic figured that a fresh perspective or two couldn't hurt. He returned to the cabin and fired up the Tornado 1. Within minutes, he was at Angel Island. After exiting the plane, he proceeded to the middle of the island, where the Master Emerald's shrine was located. Sitting at the top of the stairway leading to the shrine was Knuckles.

"Knuckles, my man!" said Sonic. "What it is?"

"Same old, same old, guarding the Master Emerald," said Knuckles.

"Decent! Now anyways, I guess you're wonderin' why I'm here…"

"Let me guess, ya thought I was lonely and ya decided to come visit me?"

"Well…that's only half of it…"

"So what's the other half?"

"See, tomorrow is Shadow and Rouge's birthday, and I was wonderin', what did ya get for 'em?"

"Well, I got a Chaos Emerald for Shadow and some wine for Rouge."

"Knux, I think Shadow already has a Chaos Emerald."

"He…WHAT!?" Knuckles sprang to his feet and brought his ham fists to bear. "I see it now! He was using me so he could give the Emerald to that crazy bat! Thanks for the heads up!"

"Er…yeah…you're welcome."

* * *

So, Sonic headed back down to the planet's surface. After landing the Tornado, he got to Emerald City fast, but then he took things slow. He had good reason, too…

"SONIC!"

Glomping him was none other than Amy Rose.

"For once, I'm glad to see ya, Ames!" said Sonic.

"Oh Sonic, don't pretend you're not interested!" said Amy. "I can smell your fascination from a mile off!"

"Oh-kay then." Sonic rolled his eyes and gently pushed Amy away. "Now that you're here, I got a problem…"

"What's wrong?"

"Ya know about Shadow and Rouge's birthday, right?"

"Yes?"

"So what did ya get for 'em, then?"

"I got an ice cream maker and a Crock-Pot!"

Sonic tilted his head. "Ames, are ya sure that they like cookin'?"

"Well, I've heard that they don't usually have time to cook, so I figured that they could use something that would do all the cooking for them, plus they could have a tasty treat to follow it up!"

Sonic stroked his chin. "Hmmm…good point. Anyways, nice talkin' to ya!"

"You too, Sonic!

* * *

Sonic's next destination took him deep into the heart of the Great Forest. He ended up in Knothole Village, which served as a retreat for the Royal Family and a sometimes base for an irregular group of Freedom Fighters. He hoped that the village would be occupied at the moment, and as he entered, he found his hopes fulfilled. He ran to the nearest group of people.

"Sal, Bunnie, Ant, Rote!" exclaimed Sonic. "Boy, am I glad to see you guys!"

"Always a pleasure, Sonic!" said Sally Acorn.

"Glad to see y'all!" said Bunnie Rabbot.

"Yes, we are sad to be seeing you!" said Antoine D'Coolette.

"What's up, Sonic?" asked Rotor Walrus.

"Guess what?"

"What?" said everybody.

"Tomorrow is Shadow and Rouge's birthday and I don't even have a gift to give 'em!"

"And let me guess…you're wondering what you should get?" said Sally.

"Actually, I was kinda wonderin' what you guys are gettin'."

Sally giggled. "Come along, I'll show you!"

So, Sally led Sonic to the laboratory, located on the north side of the village. As they entered, the Blue Blur caught sight of a strange cylindrical device with a bevy of gauges, knobs and switches attached to it.

"Whoa, that is funky!" said Sonic. "What does it do?"

"It's a fusion generator," replied Rotor. "Ever since Rouge got that mansion near Rusty Ruin Zone, she's been looking for a safer power source than the nuclear reactor that's currently powering it."

"OK, I can dig that. Smell ya later!"

"You too!"

Sonic and Sally hugged each other before parting.

* * *

Sonic's next destination took him back to Azure Lake Zone, albeit on the north side. Another cabin was present here. This one bore a good resemblance to Sonic and Tails' cabin, albeit smaller and without the garage. Ol' Blue wasted no time in knocking on the front door.

"Yes, who is it?" asked a female voice.

"It's Sonic!"

"Just a moment!"

Soon, the door opened. Standing there was Vanilla the Rabbit.

"Good afternoon, Sonic! What's on your mind?"

"Can I talk to Cream?"

"Certainly!" Vanilla turned around. "Cream, Sonic is here!"

"Coming!"

A moment later, Cream the Rabbit emerged, as did her pet Chao, Cheese.

"Mr. Sonic! It's good to see you!" Cream hugged Sonic, who returned the gesture.

"Good to see ya, too!" said Sonic.

"Chao!" said Cheese.

Cream broke away from the hug. "What brings you here, Mr. Sonic?"

"Here's the breakdown:" said Sonic. "Tomorrow is Shadow and Rouge's birthday, see? So, I dropped by to ask what you're gettin' for 'em."

"Mommy and I always get flowers for people who have birthdays, but this year, we're also getting them chocolates! We're even preparing lots of food for them!"

"Chao Chao!" said Cheese.

"OK, that's bomb!" said Sonic. "Catch ya at the party!"

"Of course!" said Cream. "It was nice talking to you!"

"Chao!" said Cheese.

So, Sonic and Cream hugged again before going their separate ways.

Actually, Sonic never left Azure Lake Zone. Not far from the cabin was Big the Cat, who was on one of his daily fishing trips.

"Big!" said Sonic. "What's shakin'?"

"Oh, I'm just fishing," said Big.

"All right, awesome! Now, I got a question…"

"What do you want?"

"I wanna know, what did ya get for Shadow and Rouge's birthday?"

"Well, I like Froggy, so I got them frogs!"

Sonic had a blank expression on his face. "Right. Anyways, that's all for now! Stay groovy, ya dig?"

"You got it, Sonic!"

* * *

Unsure of where to go next, Sonic decided to go to the Emerald Place Mall, the largest shopping center in Emerald City. Big Blue hoped that based on what his friends told him thus far, he would find inspiration for a gift. Alas, no matter what ground he covered in the mall, no neurons fired in his brain. So, he decided to give up for now and hit up the food court. Sonic chose to order something from Meh Burger. The line was unusually long for the time of the day, but that didn't deter him.

"Good afternoon, Sonic."

Sonic nearly jumped out of his shoes. "Jeez, Espio! Don't sneak up on me like that!"

"I was right beside you from the moment you entered the mall," said Espio the Chameleon.

"Yeah…sure…whatever. Now that you're here, I gotta ask: What did you, Vector and Charmy get for Shadow and Rouge's birthday?"

"Come along, I will show you."

* * *

Espio took Sonic down to Redford's Auto Sales & Service, located on the East Side. Vector the Crocodile and Charmy Bee were already there.

"YAY! Sonic's here!" Charmy thrust his fist into the air.

"We've been waitin' all day for ya!" said Vector. "What took ya so long?"

Sonic shrugged. "Ah, not much. Just hangin' out at Uncle Chuck's shop and visiting friends."

"Sorry to hear about Chuck, by the way."

"Thanks, Vector. Condolences aside, where's Shadow and Rouge's gifts from you guys?"

"See those full-size babies over there?"

Vector pointed out a black 1972 Pontiac Grand Ville convertible and a white 1972 Oldsmobile Ninety-Eight convertible.

"You're gettin' 'em those?" queried Sonic.

"Yeah, aren't they great?" said Charmy.

Sonic scratched his head. "Well yeah, they are, but…I was thinkin' Shadow might want a black Trans Am instead. Plus, Rouge keeps talkin' about wantin' a Vette…"

Vector crossed his arms. "No Sonic, we ain't gettin' thems two any high-performance machines!"

"Why not?"

"Don't tell me ya forgot about the Camaro!"

"So what?"

"So, I ain't gonna be screamin' outta my skull again!"

"Who said ya had to ride it? Besides, everybody knows that a Ram Air is a little too heavy for a big Boss Ford or a 350 Chevy!"

"Sonic is correct," said Espio. "I witnessed dynamometer tests of all those engines."

Vector threw his arms up. "I don't care if King Acorn is correct! They ain't gettin' no supercars and that's final!"

"All right, whatever," said Sonic. "I gotta go now. Nice seein' you guys again!"

"You got it!" said Vector.

"Likewise," said Espio.

"BYE!" said Charmy.

* * *

Sonic left the city again. This time, he flew the Tornado to South Island. True to its name, it was located near the southern tip of the country. Having found a suitable landing strip, the Blue Blur went to Green Hill Zone, where he sat down and reflected upon what his friends had told him thus far. He knew that there was a good chance that Shadow and Rouge would enjoy their gifts, and yet he wasn't feeling inspired. Just then, he caught a glint out of the corner of his eye, so he went to check it out. Standing there were the members of Team Mystic: Silver the Hedgehog, Blaze the Cat and Marine the Raccoon.

"Hey hey, good to see you!" said Sonic.

"Sonic?" queried Silver.

"Yes, it's good to see you," said Blaze.

"G'day, Sonic!" said Marine.

"First of all, what brings you dudes here?" asked Sonic.

"Oh, no reason," said Silver. "I was just enjoying all the amenities that the past had to offer."

"I anticipated Silver's arrival," said Blaze, "so I made the decision to transport here."

"What she said!" said Marine.

Sonic nodded. "All right, works for me. Now, I'm assumin' that you all got gifts for Shadow and Rouge's birthday, and I wanna know what ya got."

"Well, there's this new discotheque that's opening in Emerald City tomorrow," said Silver, "so I went back in time and ordered these opening night passes for them."

"I presumed that their lives could use some culture, so I purchased two tickets to a new play that will premiere next week," said Blaze.

"I got them boomerangs!" said Marine.

"OK, thanks for tellin' me!" said Sonic. "Silv, Blaze, Marine, you stay classy!"

"We will," said Silver.

"Yes, we shall do that," said Blaze.

"Gotcha!" said Marine.

The four of them parted ways. Just as Sonic was about to fly away, he was accosted by Team Dark's resident robot, E-123 Omega.

"GOOD AFTERNOON, BLUE MEATBAG," said Omega.

"Hey Omega, long time, no see!" said Sonic. "How did ya know I was here?"

"MY ANALYSIS OF YOUR PAST DOMICILES INDICATED A 75% PROBABILITY THAT YOU WOULD BE FREQUENTING THIS ISLAND AT THIS HOUR."

"OK, gotcha, whatever. Now, just tell me why you're here."

"SHADOW AND ROUGE ORDERED ME TO OBTAIN A PROGRESS REPORT FROM YOU AND THE ORANGE MEATBAG."

"If you're askin' if I got a gift for 'em, then let me lay it on ya like this: I'm workin' on it!"

"HAVING ANALYZED THE CONTENT OF YOUR ANSWER AND THE TEXTURE OF YOUR VOICE, I CONCLUDE THAT THERE IS A 100% CHANCE THAT YOU ARE TELLING A LIE."

"Moi, lying?" Sonic gestured to himself. "Man, I would never jive ya!"

"THEN WHAT IS YOUR EXPLANATION FOR THE INCIDENT WHERE YOU LIED TO ME ABOUT THE SUITABILITY OF RAMEN NOODLES FOR ROBOTS?"

"Hey, forget the Noodle Incident! It was a joke!"

"MY DATABANKS ARE UNABLE TO INVOLUNTARILY LOSE MEMORIES. FURTHERMORE, YOUR ALLEGED JOKE COULD HAVE CAUSED MY PERMANENT DEACTIVATION."

Sonic threw his arms up. "OK, I'm sorry, man!"

"APOLOGY HAS ALREADY BEEN DELIVERED. IT IS UNNECESSARY TO DELIVER ANOTHER."

"Right, gotcha. Before ya kill me, tell me what ya got for your two best pals!"

"I OBTAINED SOME CHOCOLATE FOR THEM. MY CALCULATIONS INDICATED THAT THERE IS A 100% PROBABILITY THAT THEY WILL LOVE IT."

"Ya sure?"

"OF COURSE. MY DATABANKS TELL ME THAT MANY MEATBAGS ENJOY THE CONSUMPTION OF CACAO-BASED CONFECTIONS."

"Omega, has it ever occurred to ya that maybe many meatbags also follow their heart rather than messin' with calculations and all that crap?"

"YES, I HAVE RECORDED SUCH A FACT BEFORE. HOWEVER, I DO NOT POSSESS A HEART, SO IT IS IMPOSSIBLE FOR ME TO MAKE DECISIONS BASED UPON SUCH AN ORGAN."

"If ya say so. Now before ya go, riddle me this: why did you come to see me rather than Shadow or Rouge?"

"THEY WERE OCCUPIED WITH A MISSION OF THEIR OWN, A MISSION THAT THEY DEEMED ME UNNECESSARY FOR."

"Understood. If you'll excuse me, I gotta get their gifts! Check you at the party!"

"AS YOU WISH."

Now that he'd checked with all his friends, Sonic headed back to the shop. Having received as much intel as he could, he hoped that he could find something on his own.


	5. Hope And Despair

**A/N: Sorry for the late update! I was tired all last week, not to mention I had internet problems. Anyways, here you go, and if you have anything to say, don't be afraid to speak up!**

* * *

Back at the shop, things were going smoothly. Well…except for one thing…

"Tails, did ya figure out what you're gonna get for Shadow and Rouge?"

Tails shook his head. "Not yet."

"Yeah, well, neither did I. I got a couple of ideas, but it seems like all the good ones are taken."

"So what are you gonna do?"

Sonic sighed. "I dunno. Maybe I'll just get random crap and hope that they like it."

"Sonic, are you sure that's such a good idea?"

"To be honest…no. However, it's probably the only way I'm gonna hit paydirt."

"I won't stop you, then."

"Now if you'll excuse me, I am up, over and gone!"

Sonic sped out of the facility and headed for the Emerald Place Mall.

* * *

A few minutes later, Sonic returned with a large rectangular box.

"Tails, dig this!"

Sonic opened the box, revealing a robot. It resembled one of those classic-style robots seen in older TV shows and movies, with a square head, square body, and appendages that seemed to have been fashioned from flexible duct hoses. Meanwhile, a few workers had gathered around to see what was going on.

"Sonic, don't Shadow and Rouge already have Omega?"

"Yeah, but I figured they could use a kinder, gentler model, ya know, one that Robuttnik didn't get his filthy mitts all over."

Tails stroked his chin. "OK, I can see that. Let's try it out."

"Here goes…"

Without further ado, Sonic opened up a small compartment on the back of the robot's head and flipped a switch to the "ON" position. The robot made some bleeps, bloops and blorps along with other analog sounds before becoming fully operable.

"GREETINGS," said the robot. "I AM GENER-O-BOT 9000. PLEASE INSERT GIRDER."

"Please insert girder!?" said Sonic. "What do ya think this is, the year 3000!?"

Gener-O-Bot turned to face Tails. "GIRDER DETECTED. MUST FORM INTO NEW SHAPE." He then began approaching Tails.

"Uh oh!"

Tails made a break for it, leaving the shop in the process. However, Gener-O-Bot pursued him with equal speed and vigor. Seeing his best friend in danger, Sonic gave pursuit.

Outside, Tails attempted to fly away, but Gener-O-Bot sprouted a jetpack and went after him. Seeing this, Sonic used his speed to run up the side of a building and jump to the top of another. From building to building, the Blue Blur jumped until he finally reached Gener-O-Bot and clobbered him with a homing attack, shredding him like tissue paper and showering the ground below with assorted bits of metal and plastic. Both Sonic and Tails stopped to take a look at the wreckage.

"Man…I'm so wrong!" said Sonic.

* * *

After disposing of Gener-O-Bot's remains, Tails went back to work, while Sonic came back with another gift: a box of chocolates.

"I know Cream and Omega already got one of these," said Sonic, "but I know Rouge really loves this stuff, so I figured, ah, why the heck not? Wanna try some?"

"OK" said Tails.

So, Sonic and Tails each took a chocolate. When they bit into them, they got a nasty electric shock.

"Sonic, let me take a look at those chocolates…"

Tails grabbed the box and looked at it. There, in bold serif font, was the word "SHOCOLATES", with lightning bolts replacing each S. He thrust it back to Sonic.

"Did you even look at the label!?" said Tails.

"Of course I did!" said Sonic. "How was I supposed to know that these things were gonna shock us!?"

"Uh…I don't know! Weren't the lightning bolts warning enough?"

"Big deal! Warheads don't actually explode when ya eat them, so I figured these were safe!"

"I…" Tails paused before saying anything further. "You do have a point there. Still, I wonder why these things haven't been taken off the shelves."

Sonic shrugged. "Who knows? I'm just gonna get something else for 'em."

* * *

It didn't take long for Sonic to show up with another gift…

"Dig this, man!"

Sonic handed Tails a DVD.

"Sonic, why are you giving this to Shadow and Rouge?"

"Well, I know how much Shadow is a fan of those _Executioner_ movies, so I figured he might have missed one," said Sonic.

Tails narrowed his eyes. "Did you even look at the title?"

"Yeah! So?"

"So, this isn't even a real _Executioner_ movie! It's just a low-budget ripoff!"

"Re-he-he-he-heally? Prove it!"

"OK, what about _this_?"

First, Tails showed Sonic the movie title, which was actually _The Executioners_. Next, he showed him the back cover, which showed the logo of The Asylum in the bottom right corner. Ol' Blue facepalmed.

"Aw, crap! Guess I might as well get rid of this one…" Sonic tossed the DVD over his shoulder.

"Ow! Hey, watch it!" said one of the workers.

"Sorry about that!" Sonic turned to Tails. "Go outside, man. I'll be back with another gift, and this time, I'm gonna make sure it's something they'll flat out enjoy!"

"OK!"

* * *

Tails spent at least half an hour waiting for Sonic. In the meantime, he fidgeted around, hoping not to get arrested for loitering. Then, he heard a rumbling off in the distance, which got louder and louder, until finally, the source of the rumbling arrived: Sonic had brought an M26 Pershing with him. When the tank came to a stop, Big Blue popped out of the driver's hatch.

"What do ya think, man?" asked Sonic.

"Where did you get that thing?" asked Tails.

"I got it from a government auction! Ain't it cool city?"

Tails scratched his head. "Well yeah…but…why would Shadow or Rouge need a tank?"

"Hey, ya never know! They might need the firepower!"

Tails rubbed his chin, looking off into the horizon. "Yeah, I guess I could see…WATCH OUT!"

Tails tackled Sonic just before a missile struck the tank, blowing it to pieces.

"What the hell!?" said Sonic.

"AHAHAHAHAHA!"

Not long after, the source of the missile was upon them: it was Dr. Ivo "Eggman" Robotnik, piloting his Eggmobile, which – aside from a guided missile launcher – was also equipped with a laser Gatling Gun.

Sonic got to his feet. "Jeez, Robuttnik, don't ya have any idea how much that rod cost me!?"

"Look who's talking!" said Robotnik. "You're the one who has no idea how much my creations cost!"

"Screw that! Tails, you distract Robuttnik! I got somethin' that'll make him think twice!"

"You got it!" said Tails.

Ergo, Sonic rushed back into the shop, while Tails ran from Robotnik. Laser bolts chewed up the ground around the Two-Tailed Wonder as he sped on. Though his heart was beating wildly, he kept a cool head.

( _Time I did what I do best!_ )

With that, Tails took to the skies. Robotnik fired a missile at him, but he stopped flying just long enough to sneak under the missile, which struck a nearby building.

( _Come on, Sonic, hurry up!_ )

Just then, Tails saw Sonic emerge from the shop, carrying the AK he'd bought for Shadow. A few workers also came out, curious about all the noise.

"Nothin' to see here, guys!" said Sonic. "Just get back to work!"

The workers shrugged and went back inside.

"SONIC! NO!" Tails made a sharp dive for Sonic, who was taking aim with the AK. He grabbed it before Big Blue could fire a single shot.

"Tails, what are ya doin'!?" Sonic took the AK back.

Tails snatched the rifle away from Sonic again. "Didn't I tell you to get rid of this thing!?"

Sonic seized the rifle again. "I don't remember, so no!"

Tails took the rifle yet again. "Well, you told me that you wouldn't be caught dead with one of those! Plus, what if you get hurt because it malfunctions?"

Sonic grabbed the rifle yet again, oblivious to the impending danger posed by Robotnik. "That's a chance I'm willin' to take! Besides, our lives depend on it!"

Sonic prepared to take aim, but Tails wrested the AK away, only this time, Sonic wasn't letting go. The two got into a fierce grappling match, sweat pouring out of their hands and through their gloves as they tried to gain control of the rifle. Suddenly, it slipped out of Tails' hands, causing Sonic to fall backwards and drop the rifle. Upon hitting the ground, not only did the rifle discharge a round, but the receiver also burst open. Fortunately, neither Sonic nor Tails were hurt. However, at the same time the rifle fired, the Eggmobile's attachments blew up, causing it to spin around wildly and fly off into the horizon.

"I HATE THAT HEDGEHOG!" yelled Robotnik.

Sonic and Tails remained on the ground for a few seconds before getting to their feet. Just a few moments after that, a black M60 Patton with red stripes came to a stop outside the shop. Then, one of the hatches on the turret opened, and Shadow emerged.

"Nice try, Sonic."

Shadow ducked back inside the hatch and drove away, leaving Sonic and Tails with the still-smoldering remains of their tank.

"OK, so what if that one was a bust?" said Sonic. "This next gift is gonna be dy-no-mite!"

* * *

Once again, Tails waited outside, while Sonic returned with the next gift: a blue '72 Chevy Impala lowrider. The car's sound system was blasting "Low Rider" by War, as per contractual obligations.

"Sonic, are you sure about this one?" asked Tails.

Sonic gave a thumbs up. "Of course I'm sure! Check this out!"

Sonic hit the hydraulics switch in random directions. Up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right. Suddenly, when he let go of the switch, the car started bouncing by itself.

"Hey, you ain't supposed to do that!" exclaimed Sonic. "HEY! WHOA! STOP! I…THINK…I'M…GONNA…BE…"

Just then, there was a loud "poof", and the Impala vanished into thin air.

"SONIC!"

Tails rushed to the spot where the lowrider had been. He frantically looked around, hoping that Sonic would somehow reappear.

"Sonic, where are you!?"

"Over here, man!"

Tails turned around and saw Sonic walking down the sidewalk. The Blue Blur now had a gray beard + mustache and was using a cane.

"Sonic, what happened to you!?"

"Well…ya see…I kinda had to take the long way back. Can ya fix me up?"

* * *

Fortunately, Sonic and Tails found a newly-opened rejuvenation clinic, where Big Blue was able to get an all-natural overhaul. Unfortunately, this cost them a great deal of money, and they were forbidden from ever buying beef jerky again.

For the rest of the time the shop was open, Sonic locked himself away in the office. Given all the failed gifts he'd gotten, he decided to take a break for now. At the end of the day, Tails came up to the office…

"Hey Sonic, it's just about time to…Sonic?"

Actually, Sonic wasn't in the office. Seeing that, he decided to ask around…

"Excuse me, have you seen Sonic?"

"Nope, I ain't seen him in a while," said a gray hippo.

Tails moved on to the next person. "Hey, have you seen Sonic anywhere?"

"Sorry, haven't seen him," said a blue chicken.

"Hey, where's Sonic?"

"Hell if I know, kid," said an orange beetle.

Unfortunately for Tails, none of the employees knew where Sonic was, until he remembered that there was one person he'd forgotten to ask…

"Mr. Schmidt, do you know where Sonic is?"

"I'm not sure," said Schmidt. "He could have gone home, Tails."

"OK, I'll look there! Have a good day!"

"You too!"

* * *

So, Tails headed back to the cabin. To his surprise, Sonic wasn't there. Upon further reflection, he figured that the Blue Blur probably went out for another run. Therefore, the Two-Tailed Wonder shrugged it off and decided to put his jetpack away.

"Huh!? What the…"

To his surprise, he discovered that the Tornado 1 was missing from the garage. Although Tails knew that Sonic much preferred running, he also knew that he would occasionally take one of the planes out for a spin. Problem was, Big Blue preferred flying by day rather than night. Another surprise cropped up: in the distance, Tails could hear a Stuka-esque whining noise. It was this that caused more than a few neurons to fire in his brain.

( _Could that be…OH NO!_ )

Knowing that something was extremely wrong with that picture, Tails strapped on his jetpack, donned his flight goggles and fired away. The air resistance didn't matter to the Two-Tailed Wonder, for he was used to high speeds. He was also used to the adrenaline pumping through his veins. Knowing what could potentially come up next, however, was something that would take him a little getting used to. Still, he pressed on.

As he did, Tails came upon what he feared: Sonic was indeed piloting the Tornado 1, and he was heading straight for the ground. Tails did his darndest and went for the plane. Fortunately, he was able to grab on and pull the plane up into a sharp climb, thereby preventing it from hitting the ground and exploding. Keeping the plane on track, however, was a whole 'nother story, for Sonic attempted to push Tails off.

"Tails, what the hell are ya doin'!?"

Tails maintained his grip on the control lever. "Trying to save the one person who really matters to me!"

Sonic gave Tails a sharp shove. "Yeah, well maybe some of us wanna be left alone, ya know!?"

Still keeping on, Tails pulled the plane into a right bank, avoiding an oncoming tree.

"No, I won't let my best bro do this to himself!" said Tails.

"You can and ya will!"

Sonic shoved Tails with as much force as he could. This time, Tails could feel his grip on the stick slipping away, and no matter how hard he tried, he ended up letting go entirely. Fortunately, he saved himself by grabbing on the edge of the Tornado 1's cockpit.

Having regained his grip, Tails attempted to pull himself back in. However, Sonic took notice and started pounding on his hands. Tails tried moving his hands around to avoid the blows, but Sonic managed to land a few anyways. Knowing that he was going to falter at any moment, Tails intentionally let go and grabbed on to the plane's lower wing. Pulling himself forwards, Tails re-activated the jetpack, and after a short burst, got back to working on the control stick.

"FINE!" shouted Sonic. "Wanna keep messin'? I'll give ya somethin' to mess with!"

This time, Sonic aimed a punch at Tails, who attempted to dodge it and got grazed. Despite the pain, Tails kept going on, hoping to get the plane to land again. By now, the situation had broken out into a full-blown grappling match. Sonic threw another punch at Tails, but the latter grabbed it and wrestled his glove off. Then, Tails bit Sonic's ungloved hand, causing him to let out a loud yelp and grasp his hand, hoping to ease the searing pain.

"OK, if ya want it that way…"

As payback, Sonic bit into Tails' shoulder as hard as he could. Tails screamed as the pain radiated from his shoulder. Still, he carried on, and he flipped random switches, shutting off the Tornado 1's engine. Although part of him wanted to pass out, Tails directed the plane towards their cabin, hoping to sustain enough momentum to land safely. Seeing this, Sonic maintained his bite and attempted to grab the control stick.

Despite the intense hurt, Tails found the strength to punch Sonic's hand, causing it to get pinched on the interior of the cockpit. This caused Sonic to cease biting and instead grab his hand. Now that the pain had let up a bit, Tails found it much easier to control the plane. Eventually, he brought it to a soft three-point landing on a makeshift airfield near the cabin. Having landed safely, Sonic and Tails hopped out. Then, Tails started shaking Sonic.

"What were you thinking, Sonic!? You could have been killed!"

Sonic grabbed Tails by the collar and began tapping him on the head with his fist.

"Hello!? HELLO!? Anybody home!?" said Sonic. "That was the whole idea! Why'd ya have to go and screw it up?"

Tails gently pushed Sonic away. "Because I care about you, you inconsiderate moron!"

Sonic grabbed Tails' arm and started hitting him with it. "Stop hitting yourself, man!"

Tails pushed Sonic away again. "You better have a good explanation for all this!"

"FINE! Ya want an explanation, well here goes: I've had it with all this jive! I got no family, I got very little money, I'm deep in debt, and I tried gettin' good stuff for Shadow and Rouge and it's all blown up on me! I can't face Shads if I don't have a gift for him, and I don't wanna give him the satisfaction of rippin' me in half!" Sonic fell to his knees and buried his face in his hands. "I can't freakin' take it anymore…"

Tails put his hands on Sonic's shoulders. "Please, don't do this to yourself! The Sonic the Hedgehog I knew would never give up on something like this! He always comes out on top no matter how bad things look! Remember when Robotnik tried to destroy the planet with the Death Egg?"

Sonic uncovered his face and nodded. "Yeah."

"Or how about the time when Metal Sonic tried to destroy the future?"

Sonic nodded again. "Uh-huh?"

"And what about the time when Mephiles tried to destroy the entire space-time continuum?"

Sonic blinked, holding it for about a second. "Wait…how do ya still remember that?"

"It's simple: Brown's Theory of Memory Continuum states that…"

"OK, never mind that! Just get to the point!"

"I'm saying that if you open your heart, it's gonna be all right! Don't think of this as something you have to do! Think of it as something you want to do! Don't you wanna show Shadow how much you care about him?"

"That's a very interesting question, bro. I wouldn't exactly say I care about Shads, but on the other hand, he's done some real disco stuff for me, so…ah, whatever…you're right. There's just one problem…"

"What's that?"

"It's gettin' kinda late, so I think we're gonna have to can the whole groove for now."

"That's all right, the party doesn't start until lunchtime tomorrow!"

"That's keen!" Sonic got to his feet. "Thanks for the kindness, man! That meant a lot to me!"

"Any time!"

So, with smiles on their faces and warmth in their hearts, Sonic and Tails hugged each other. After breaking off from the hug, the duo put the Tornado 1 back in the garage before concluding the night with some video games and watching _Bomb Cop_. Failure was always an option, but Sonic knew he wasn't done yet…


	6. If You Put Your Mind To It

Daybreak visited itself unto the Kingdom again, as did a bright, sunshine-filled day. After breakfast and freshening up, Sonic went outside, but instead of going on one of his daily runs, he went to the garage.

( _Did we put everything away last night?_ ) thought Sonic.

While looking through the garage, he found that long-lost inspiration he'd been looking for, causing him to snap his fingers.

( _I got it!_ )

* * *

At the shop, Schmidt gave a brief presentation about yesterday's profits, while Sonic gave an inspirational speech to everybody before everyone started work. Then, the Blue Blur had a word with Tails…

"Yo, Tails…"

"Yes, Sonic?"

"I finally got some inspiration, so let's try payin' a visit to Rocky today."

"All right, sounds good."

With that, Sonic and Tails went over to Rocky's special garage bay. When they opened it up, they got a surprise: Rocky wasn't a who, but a what – a Mack M123 tank transporter, to be precise.

"What are we gonna do with this truck?" asked Tails.

Sonic shrugged. "Now that ya mention it, I figured we could go down to the local wreckin' yard, see what we can put together for Shadow and Rouge."

"Are you sure we'll be able to get it all together in time?"

Sonic put his fists on his hips. "Hey, you're the one who gave me that lecture on opening my heart, so what do YOU think?"

Tails stroked his chin. "You're right. Let's go!"

* * *

A couple of hours later, at Green Grove Zone, Sonic's friends were all gathered around a large picnic table, where a veritable smorgasbord of food had been placed. They eagerly awaited the arrival of Sonic and Tails. The hedgehog of the hour had the fever especially bad, but the same couldn't be said for his partier-in-arms.

"Shaddy, why so nervous?" asked Rouge.

Shadow stopped twiddling his thumbs. "I'm not nervous; I'm just hoping that I won't have to kill those two punks."

Rouge put a hand on Shadow's back. "Come on, don't be so negative! If we know anything about Big Blue and Fox Boy, it's that they always follow through on their promises!"

"YOUR STATEMENT SEEMS TO BE CORRECT," said Omega. "HOWEVER, I CONCLUDED EARLIER THAT THE BLUE MEATBAG WAS LYING TO ME."

"Then maybe you need to get your conclusion chip checked!" said Rouge.

"I USE MULTIPLE CIRCUITS TO FORMULATE CONCLUSIONS. THIS SHOULD HAVE BEEN PART OF YOUR KNOWLEDGE BANKS BY NOW."

"Hey, look over there!" Amy pointed off in the distance.

Everybody stopped what they were doing and turned to see what Amy was looking at. A big green shape could be seen heading towards the party area, making a distinct growling noise. Minutes later, Sonic and Tails pulled up with Rocky, which was pulling a lowboy trailer with some presents and two unidentified objects under tarps. As Rocky pulled to a stop, Sonic and Tails killed the engine and hopped out.

"YAY!" Amy glomped Sonic again.

Shadow crossed his arms. "About time you got here. Have you no concept of time?"

Sonic pushed Amy away. "Hey, cool it, brotha! We were just puttin' the finishing touches on your gifts!"

"First of all, I'm not your brother, and second of all, since you two were more interested in the gifts themselves than my feelings, I think it's only fair that you two go first."

"Us? Go _first_? I get what you're gettin' at here, but don't ya think that maybe ya wanna save the best for last?"

Shadow snarled at Sonic. " _Fine_." He turned around. "Amy, you go first."

"What, have you forgotten _me_?"

Shadow turned to his left to see where the familiar voice was coming from.

"Mephiles!"

"Yes, the Dark Prince of Soleanna is risen from his ceaseless sepulcher!" said Mephiles the Dark.

Shadow stepped back a little. "Impossible! Sonic told me that he'd blown out your flame!"

"Oh, but it IS possible! At the instant that Sonic had extinguished the flame of Solaris, my consciousness had been relegated to a place of eternal damnation. However, there were certain factors that precluded my perpetual sojourn. Firstly, there was the question of whom I had been engendered through. Being that I was conceived in your shade, I absorbed an immense quantity of Chaos energy. More importantly, unbeknownst to you, there exists an infinite number of parallel universes. Taking advantage of such a factor, I was able to re-emerge in a new vessel in one of said universes, and by fashioning a portal, I arrived here."

"So you did. Now, why are you here?"

"Why else would I be in attendance? I've come to convey your present to you."

"And what is my present?"

Mephiles put his hands on Shadow's cheeks. " _I'm_ your present."

In a split second, Mephiles began kissing Shadow, whose immediate reaction was to flail around. After a few seconds of flailing, Shadow attempted to push Mephiles away, but the Dark One held firm.

Everyone else's reactions varied: for example, Vanilla covered Cream's eyes. Sonic and Tails tilted their heads at funny angles, trying to make sense of the situation. Big just stared at the two, as did a few others.

"HEY! Get away from MY Shaddy!"

Perhaps no reaction was stronger than that of Rouge's, which was to try to pry Mephiles away from Shadow. However, Mephiles kicked her in the stomach and kept kissing Shadow.

"YOU IDIOT!" screamed Rouge. "Didn't your parents tell you NEVER to hit a woman!?"

Mephiles paused. "I never had any parents."

Mephiles continued to kiss Shadow when he felt a sharp blow to the back of his head, inadvertently knocking the two of them to the ground. At this point, the Dark One chose to ignore the Ultimate Life Form completely and turn on Rouge instead.

"Please, do continue your assault," said Mephiles. "It shall only make your suffering even more pleasurable."

Just then, Omega brought dual Gatling cannons to bear. "SUFFER THIS, IMPOSTOR."

Shadow pulled out an MP5A5, which prompted everyone else to get into attack positions. Seeing this, Mephiles raised a hand, formed an energy ball and grabbed Rouge by the collar.

"Now, would anyone care to deny continuation to this stupid rodent?" asked Mephiles.

Slowly, everybody let their guards down except for Shadow and Omega, who were faced with a dilemma: on one hand, Rouge had been almost like a mother to them and had kept the two sane throughout their darkest hours. On the other hand, they were dealing with a foe that logically shouldn't have been alive, and Shadow figured that the Chaos Emeralds could very well help Rouge out if anything went wrong. Still, the fact that the Ultimate Life Form's heart was racing – a very rare occurrence with him – told him that opening fire on Mephiles maybe wasn't the best idea.

"Omega, stand down." Shadow lowered his MP5.

"UNDERSTOOD." Omega retracted his Gatling cannons.

With that, Mephiles slowly let go of Rouge and lowered his hand, letting the energy ball die out. He walked over to Shadow.

"Now…where was I? Ah, yes…"

Mephiles put his hands on Shadow's cheeks and continued kissing him. Shadow could feel the redness going to his face, and once more, he tried to resist, but Mephiles pressed into him rather hard. This was enough to make him topple backwards. Now on the ground, the Ultimate Life Form pushed again and rolled over, trying to escape, but Mephiles pushed even harder and rolled him back over. This time, he spread Shadow's arms out to the sides and pinned them there.

Now powerless, Shadow was forced to accept his situation, and no part of him found this in any way enjoyable. The only solace he found in this situation was that it would be all over soon. Mephiles on the other hand found it quite pleasurable. Knowing that the one person who bore him in his current state was powerless to escape him got his blood – or whatever passed for blood – going. As a result, the Dark One pressed into his doppelganger even harder. He wanted it to last forever, but for some reason, part of him was telling him that it should stop eventually. Therefore, Mephiles let the fun continue for just another minute before stopping, leaving a dazed, panting Shadow underneath him.

"Did you like that?" asked Mephiles. "I enjoyed it _very_ , _very_ much."

Shadow could only let out a moan.

"Oh, so you DO like it. That's splendid, because there will be _more_ awaiting you."

Mephiles grabbed Shadow's crotch, causing him to moan again. He shook his head softly.

"Resist all you want, but I shall have my way with you, my beautiful Shadow." Smiling, Mephiles got up and took a spot at the picnic table.

( _Shadow's lips are so tickly._ )

Meanwhile, everyone else ignored Mephiles and focused on Shadow, who was still on the ground, red in the face and panting.

"Are you all right, Shaddy?" asked Rouge.

Shadow found the strength to nod, and as the shock was wearing off, he slowly clambered to his feet. When he got up, he shook his head for a bit.

"Now, if anyone else could…"

"Sorry we're late; this bozo took a wrong turn and ended up in Varsovia!"

Shadow turned to look who was crashing his party now: Scratch and Grounder.

"What the hell?" said Shadow.

"It's not my fault," said Grounder. "Scratch here forgot to use the GPS!"

"Hey, YOU'RE the one with the GPS, so YOU should have turned it on!" said Scratch.

"Well you're the one who accidentally got oil spilled on it!"

"That's because ya forgot to pick up one of your toys!"

"MY toys!? I saw ya accidentally knock it down!"

"Then why didn't ya…"

Fed up with their arguing, Shadow took Scratch and Grounder by the collar and started smashing them together. When the smoke cleared, the two robots now had random parts stuck to each other.

"Let's get outta here!"

Scratch and Grounder hopped away using whatever misplaced appendages they had.

Shadow clenched his fists. "Now, would ANYBODY ELSE care to show up late to my party?"

Everyone was silent.

"Shadow, if I may…"

"And what are YOU doing here, Snively?" asked Shadow.

"My uncle was inadvertently detained, so I assumed that I didn't need his permission to attend the party," said Snively.

"Considering all the misery you've caused everybody…" Shadow pulled out his MP5 again, "…I'd say you're wrong."

Snively put his hands up. "Please, don't shoot me! I come here in peace!"

"You liar!"

"No, I'm not lying! Please, allow me to give you your gift!"

"I'll allow it."

Snively reached for a present that had brown wrapping paper.

"SLOWLY," said Shadow.

Snively did as he was told, sweat dripping down his brows. He walked to Shadow and handed him the gift. Still keeping his eyes on Snively, Shadow opened it up. It was a box of Swiss rolls.

"OK, I'll let you go," said Shadow.

Snively wiped his forehead.

"Now get out of here!" Shadow brought up his MP5 again.

Snively nodded and ran for his Hover Unit. As the car flew away, Shadow put away his gun.

"Now, where were we…?" asked Shadow, who proceeded to receive his gift from Amy.

* * *

A number of gifts later, all that remained were the ones from Sonic and Tails.

"Knuckles, could ya help us get these off the trailer?" asked Sonic.

"Sure thing!"

Knuckles picked up both boxes and set them down on the ground. Shadow and Rouge remained motionless.

"Well aren't ya gonna open' em?" asked Sonic.

"Not until you give us your cards," replied Shadow. "You did remember our birthday cards…right?"

Sonic laughed. "Of course we did! Don't yank our chains, man!"

"Just hand us the stupid cards."

Sonic and Tails handed their cards to Shadow and Rouge, respectively. Shadow's card said, "TO THE ONLY PERSON WHO'S GOOD ENOUGH TO BE MY FAKE: THANKS FOR KEEPIN' ME ON MY TOES, MAN! YOU'RE BEAUTIFUL!"

Meanwhile, Rouge's card said, "TO THE LADY WHO'S BEEN LIKE A BIG SISTER TO ME: THANKS FOR MAKING SURE THAT SHADOW DIDN'T HURT ME! YOU'RE ALMOST AS GOOD AS SONIC!"

Each card also contained 500 Mobiums, because Sonic and Tails were that generous. Shadow merely gave a "hmph" upon reading his card, while Rouge gave an "awww, how sweet of you!" upon reading hers.

"All right, let's check out what our two little cuties got for us!" said Rouge.

Without further ado, Shadow and Rouge tore off the wrapping paper. Sonic had an anticipating grin on his face, while Tails merely looked at him, wondering why he was like this. There were two wooden crates under the wrapping paper, which contained Shadow and Rouge's gifts: His was a 1980 Kawasaki KX420, while hers was a 1985 KTM 250MX. Sonic could barely contain himself as he watched Shadow and Rouge turn around.

"Well?" said Sonic.

Shadow glared at Sonic, while Rouge kept that perpetual smirk on her face.

"Congratulations," said Shadow. "You get to live."

"SHI-SHA!" Sonic dropped to his knees and pumped his fists.

Rouge's smile widened. "Thank you so very much, my little darlings! I knew you'd pull through!"

Tails rubbed the back of his head. "You're welcome! We worked really hard on these things!"

Sonic got back to his feet. "Actually, it was Tails who did most of the work; I just put the finishing touches on!"

"Nice!" said Rouge. "Tell us more!"

"OK," said Tails. "I replaced the cylinder heads, pistons, crankcases, forks, shocks and swingarms with lightweight equivalents made of a special titanium-magnacarbide alloy. Next, I bored out the cylinders themselves and added Boyesen power reeds for extra power. For improved handling, I filled the front shocks with special…"

"SHUT UP, TAILS!" yelled Knuckles.

"Knuckie, it's not nice to interrupt!" said Rouge.

"And it's not nice to bore people to death!"

Rouge walked over to Knuckles and put her hands on his cheeks.

"Don't you wanna hear about how wonderful our bikes are?"

"No!" said Knuckles.

"If you sit through this, I promise I won't steal the Master Emerald again!"

"Yeah right!"

"Of course I'm right! Now, do you accept my promise, or am I going to have to take _drastic_ measures?"

Rouge put her face closer to Knuckles', causing him to blush.

"Fine…I'll let Tails continue," said Knuckles.

Rouge gently squeezed Knuckles' cheeks. "Good boy!"

"As I was saying," said Tails, "I filled the front shocks with special Igon gas for improved handling. I also put on aftermarket exhausts for even better performance. As for the drive chains, I put on D.I.D. chains for lighter weight and added durability. Finally, if you guys run out of fuel, I modified the gas tanks so that the bikes can use Chaos Emeralds for fuel."

"And I even did the paintjobs!" said Sonic.

Shadow merely gave a "hmph" and a curt nod, while Rouge gave an "ah!"

"Well, now that we're not dead meat, I had an idea…"

Sonic walked over to the trailer and pulled the tarps off the two mystery objects. They turned out to be Sonic and Tails' own motocross bikes, a 1978 Yamaha YZ400 and a 1982 Suzuki RM250, respectively.

"Why did you bring these over?" asked Shadow.

"Since we got ya some bikes, I figured it would be way past cool if we could open these babies up!" replied Sonic. "You want in?"

Shadow clenched his fists. "I won't live a lie. Let's race."

"Twitchin'! Tails, Rouge, you cats diggin' it!"

"Yeah!" said Tails.

"Yes I am, hon!" said Rouge.

"Good, cause I'm _so_ dyin' for some horsepower!"

So, Sonic, Tails, Shadow and Rouge lined their bikes up on a nearby trail. Because the bikes were slightly taller than them, they had a number of modifications so that people of their height could ride, including relocated foot pegs, modified handlebars and automatically-retracting kickstands.

"Wait, hold up!" said Sonic.

Tails, Shadow and Rouge looked at him and said "what?" simultaneously.

"I just remembered: we can't race without _these_!"

Sonic pulled out four open-face style motorcycle helmets with matching Scott goggles. Sonic's had an American flag design, Tails' was white with an orange stripe, Shadow's was black with a red stripe, and Rouge's was white with a magenta stripe. Everyone put their helmets on except Shadow, who chucked his over the horizon.

"Shadow, what was that all about!?" said Sonic.

"You seem to have forgotten that I'm the Ultimate Life Form," said Shadow. "Therefore, I don't need a helmet."

"Don't need a helmet!?" Sonic pointed his hand at Cream and Charmy. "Dude, you're settin' a bad example for the kids!"

"The only example I wish to set is that of my superior power."

"Are ya sure ya wanna smash your skull against a tree?"

"Sonic's right…" said Tails.

"I don't care who's right!" said Shadow. "I'm the Ultimate Life Form! My choice supersedes yours!"

Rouge wrapped her arms around Shadow. "Don't you wanna be around to enjoy all your gifts?"

Shadow gently pushed Rouge away. "Don't you want to respect my decision?"

Rouge lost her smile. "OK, Mr. Sourpuss! Be that way! Just don't come crying to me when I turn out to be right!"

"Hmph."

Without further question, everybody hopped on their bikes and gave a hard kick to the starters. The bikes zinged to life, eventually filling the air with the acrid smell of two-stroke oil. Amy got up from her seat and served as the flag girl.

3…

2…

1…

The flag dropped, the nonsense stopped, and the racers gave it their all. The big-bore bikes easily out-pulled the 250s. Sonic got the holeshot, but the race was far from over. Silver was hovering above ground recording Sonic and Shadow with his nano camera, while Charmy filmed Tails and Rouge with his watch phone.

Not long into the race, Shadow decided that it would be a good idea to attack Sonic. Though he delivered a solid kick to the Blue Blur's Yamaha, the latter held on tight and got back on course. Sonic's bike had slightly higher performance, but Shadow seemed to outdo him in turns because of his Kawasaki's more modern Uni-Trak suspension. The rear end of Sonic's bike would also kick around occasionally despite Tails adding a DG-style swingarm plus custom shocks with precise tuning. Nevertheless, Sonic kept a solid grip and steely determination, which helped him keep up with Shadow.

"CHAOS…"

Before Shadow could deliver a single Chaos ability, Sonic snatched the green Chaos Emerald from his hand and threw it away. With his rage amplified, Shadow reached for Sonic's throat and tried to choke him. However, Ol' Blue swatted his hand away, which was a good thing because they were headed straight for a tree. The two bikers dodged it just in time, thereby saving Sonic from a broken arm. Not long after, they got back on the path. Then, Sonic raised his left hand.

"YO SHAD, PICK TWO!"

Taking notice of this, Shadow pointed to Sonic's pinky and index fingers. In one swift motion, Sonic pulled Shadow's goggles up, retracted his other fingers and poked Shadow in the eyes. Unfortunately for the Blue Blur, this barely even slowed his rival down. Then, Shadow punched Sonic in the ribs. Sonic was tempted to put his hand over the spot in an attempt to soothe the pain, but he knew that he would end up letting go of the throttle if he did that, so he gritted his teeth and bore it.

Coming up on a hill, Sonic gunned the motor as much as possible. When the two hedgehogs flew over the jump, Sonic saw a special opportunity: he jumped off his bike and tackled Shadow off of his. They both hit the ground with a sickening thud, while the bikes landed on their sides and sputtered out, their fuel suddenly being cut off.

With that, Shadow removed Sonic's helmet and goggles and punched him in the nose. Growling, Sonic started choking Shadow and shaking him violently. The Ultimate Life Form hopped to his feet and kicked his rival in the chest, knocking the proverbial wind out of him and propelling him backwards. While Sonic was still down, Shadow ran over to him, straddled him and started beating his face in with wild abandon. Helpless to resist him, Big Blue closed his eyes and hoped that the pain would all be over soon.

Then, something happened: Shadow's arm froze up before he could deliver another blow. Sonic looked into his eyes with a mix of confusion and vulnerability.

"Sh…Shadow…do it…"

Shadow didn't do anything.

"C-c-come on, man…just do it…"

Shadow remained frozen.

"The hell…are ya…w-waitin' for? Finish me!"

Slowly, Shadow lowered his arm and unclenched his fist.

"I can't," said Shadow.

"Eh?" Sonic raised one eyebrow and dropped his jaw slightly. "Why not?"

"Sonic…I…when I look into your eyes, I see the very personification of innocence and purity."

Sonic gave a weak chuckle. "Come on, man! I've been around before!"

"Please, let me continue."

"Sure thing."

"I couldn't destroy someone with a heart like yours, especially not after you steered me in the right direction when Black Doom threatened to corrupt me. And then there was Mephiles…stupid, pathetic Mephiles. The moment I saw that energy beam puncture you, I felt like my own heart had been punctured. Elise didn't help matters, either. What if that had been me, in Rouge's arms…or worse… _Maria's_ arms?" Shadow turned aside and pounded on the ground. "Damn it, why did Maria have to die!?"

After a brief pause, Shadow cleared his throat.

"Anyways, the point I'm trying to make is this: I've changed since we first met. I'm not the kind of person you think I am. I'm not the Anti-Christ or the Iron Man. No…I may be the Ultimate Life Form, but that doesn't mean I don't have feelings. Whenever we fight, have arguments or otherwise act mean towards each other, I don't really mean to hurt you. In fact, I look forward to fighting you." Shadow put his hands on Sonic's cheeks. "Sonic the Hedgehog, you're the only person who's made me feel alive ever since Maria's death. Rouge may be like a mother to me, but you're more of a friend to me than she ever was. Truth be told, you're my _best_ friend."

Sonic stared at Shadow. "D-do ya really mean that?"

"Yes, damn it, I mean that."

Sonic frowned. "I dunno, that's a really nice thing to say, but…I mean…I already got Tails…"

"As far as I'm concerned, it's possible to have more than one best friend. As long as two people truly care about each other, then there's nothing that they can't do."

Sonic slowly sat up and put his hands on Shadow's shoulders. "Shadow…I…I…I love you." He winced somewhat. "No, I don't mean it like that, but…"

"Don't worry…" Shadow put his hands around Sonic's rib cage and smiled. "I understand."

Sonic and Shadow hugged each other, and both hedgehogs raised their eyebrows. Shadow felt the emotion welling up within his chest. However, no matter how hard he tried to suppress them, a trickle of tears managed to escape. He squeezed just a little bit more. The situation brought about different memories for them. Sonic felt like he was holding Muttski, his favorite dog from when he was little. As for Shadow, he felt like he was hugging a kitten, or whatever he thought a kitten felt like since he'd never actually felt one. The embrace could have continued for forever, and it did even when Tails and Rouge finally caught up. The two sidekicks cut the power to their bikes and took some time to behold the situation. Tails tilted his head, while Rouge smiled and put her hands over her heart.

"Awwww…isn't that precious?" said Rouge. "Doesn't that make you want to get along?

Rouge grabbed Tails and hugged him, squeezing him against her chest. The Two Tailed Wonder flailed around as he tried to escape the marshmallow hell.

As for Sonic and Shadow, they finally ceased their hug and got to their feet. Seeing that Shadow was crying, Sonic pulled out some tissues.

"Here, ya might need these, man."

Shadow blew his nose. "Thanks…friend."

"You're welcome!" Sonic turned to Rouge. "So…about that debt…"

"Ah, yes…" Rouge pulled a pen and a checkbook from her cleavage. "How much do you need?"

"Oh, 10 million colors should do it."

"Gladly!" Rouge wrote out a check for 10 million Mobiums and handed it to Sonic.

"Thanks a bunch, Mama!" Sonic hugged Rouge, who gladly returned the gesture. Big Blue took more than a few seconds to inhale Rouge's scent. It reminded him of a field of pastel flowers. Rouge gently rubbed Sonic's back before letting go of him.

"Satisfied?" asked Rouge.

"Oh yeah!" said Sonic. "Now, let's get back to the party!"

"But what about the race?"

"Forget the race, man! The way I see it, we all win! Now if you'll excuse me, I gotta get back and get down!"

"Groovy!" Shadow winked.

So, Team Sonic and Team Dark returned to their bikes and cruised back to the party. There, they ate, drank, were merry and created moments that they would cherish forever.

* * *

 **A/N: And thus concludes a special day for two special _Sonic_ characters. BUT WAIT! I'm not done yet! I've got a couple of surprises for ya...**


	7. Sonic Says

Today was a special day not only for Tails, but also for Cosmo the Seedrian. They were sitting atop the Brecken Bridge in Hancock City, looking out at the Empire skyline in the fog.

"Cosmo…I wanted to get you something special for your birthday, but I spent all my money fixing the Tornado 1, so all I could get you was this…"

Tails pulled out an old music box that he found in a dumpster in an alleyway near his 43rd Street apartment. The glass was cracked and the metal was tarnished and bent, but he knew it was still functional.

"Wow, let me try that!" Cosmo turned the crank on the box. As she did, it played the music from Chrome Gadget Zone. "Tails, this is beautiful! Thank you!" She put her hands on his cheeks and kissed him, causing him to blush.

"Birthday gifts don't have to be expensive," said Sonic, who was standing on one of the bridge's supports. "Sometimes, the simplest things are what count! As long as people can get use out of them, that's what matters!"


	8. Epilogue To an Evening

After the party, Shadow and Rouge headed back to her mansion, near Rusty Ruin Zone. With its faded grayish-brown façade, it fit in perfectly with the environment. Inside was an interior fit for a mansion, marble flooring, marble staircases, imported crystal chandeliers, imported carpeting, mahogany and leather furniture…in short, the author's interpretation of luxury. Shadow and Rouge crashed in the latter's bedroom, where a fluffy king-size bed awaited them. She insisted that he curl up with her in bed and read a good book together. The Ultimate Life Form agreed, albeit on the condition that he get to pick the book. She acquiesced to his demand, and they got down with their quality time. Rouge found the book – _The Executioner: War Against the Mafia_ – to be rather macabre for her tastes, but having Shadow by her side softened things up a bit. As night fell, Shadow told Rouge that he would be going out for a bit. She didn't question him, knowing that he always returned. Plus, he promised to be in time for the opening of that disco that Silver bought passes for.

However, when the grand opening of The Glitter Palace came, Shadow was nowhere to be found. Rouge went in anyways, knowing that he had to come around anyways. Though she vaguely recalled that he hated disco, she also knew that her feminine charms would convince him to arrive sooner or later. Inside, she texted him, saying that she could be found at the bar if he ever decided to show up. For close to an hour, Rouge nursed an overpriced drink as she waited for Shadow to get there. Mobius was an egalitarian society, but even so, a few creeps thought it would be funny to hit on her. Rather than risk getting kicked out and ending the night prematurely, she walked away like Renée and let some other guys bust them up. She felt like partying, so as Roundtree once said, she got on up.

Eventually, Rouge had her fill of mirror balls, neon lights, strobes and that four-on-the-floor beat, so with a bit of disappointment in her heart, she went back home.

"Hey Mama, what's up?"

Just as Rouge entered her bedroom, she saw Sonic sitting down in a rocking chair, legs crossed, a cocky smile gracing his face.

"Big Blue, what are you doing here, and what's…that…smell?"

Rouge smiled when she caught a whiff of something, which caused her jaw to drop.

"It's Cruiser Cologne," said Sonic. "Far out, don't ya think?"

Rouge nodded. "Yep, that's some good stuff, all right. So tell me, why are you invading my home?"

"Here's what's poppin': Remember that one birthday gift ya got for me?"

"I think so…"

"Well, since it was so nice, and since ya saved my uncle's business, I thought it would only be fair if I returned the favor, ya know?"

"Sure…"

"Now, before we get down, I gotta ask: Is Shad here?"

"Ah, he probably got snatched up by Mephiles. Too bad."

"Anyways, now that that's settled, I want ya to walk over to the bed."

"OK…" Rouge did so.

"Next, I want ya to take off your clothes."

Rouge snapped to attention. "WHAT!?"

"I said, take off your clothes."

Rouge put her hands on her hips. "Are you nuts? You don't just tell a woman to take her clothes off!"

Sonic walked over to her.

"Maybe _this_ will change your mind!" Sonic produced the blue Chaos Emerald.

Rouge regained her smile. "All right, now we're getting somewhere!"

She took the Chaos Emerald from him and put it down on one of the nightstands next to the bed. After that, she began to disrobe, and he looked away.

"You're allowed to look, you know!" said Rouge. "Nudity is nothing to be ashamed of! Hell, look at you and the other guys!"

So, Sonic slowly turned his gaze back towards her. He kept his composure in spite of the display presented before him.

( _Dang, that's some good stuff!_ ) "OK, now lie down face-first on the bed."

"You got it!"

Rouge got up onto the bed, where a neon blue towel had been placed. Lying face-first, she tilted her head and laid it on a pillow. Then, she felt a bit of weight on top of her: Sonic – gloves and footwear off – had straddled her body. Soon after, she was treated to the smell of coconut.

"And here comes the fun part!" said Sonic.

Sonic rubbed some lotion on his hands, and he started to massage Rouge's back. Immediately, Rouge let out a soft "oh".

"That…feels…good…"

Rouge gave way to Sonic's firm yet soft touch. Encouraged, the Blue Blur pressed down just a bit harder.

"Wow, you're soft!" said Sonic. "I've felt the touch of quite a few women, but you take the cake!"

Rouge couldn't respond with words, so she said "ah". Soon enough, Sonic got into the groove, working up and down her back.

"Hey Rouge, do ya like the sound of my voice?"

Rouge nodded slightly.

"Good, because I _love_ the sound of yours!"

While working on Rouge's back, Sonic began massaging at the base of her wings. This caused her to moan a bit more, which encouraged him to keep doing that area. As this was happening, she imagined herself on a tropical island, with waves lapping against the shoreline, the sun beating down on her skin, the cool breeze caressing her. To enhance the mood, Sonic hummed a slow version of the Green Hill Zone music. Then, he let his hands travel down Rouge's arms and to her hands.

"Nice hands. Ya must be real good with those, know what I'm sayin'?" Sonic smirked.

Rouge let slip with another moan. After massaging her hands for a bit, Sonic returned to her back. Keeping his hands on her back, he nibbled her ear, causing her to giggle. Then, he continued.

"Hey, I gotta say, I've always loved your self-confidence. To tell ya the truth, I've heard too many stories about ladies who didn't dig themselves, and those made me feel really sad, so knowin' that there's somebody like you out there who takes good care of herself and ain't afraid to show it…well, that makes me happy, ya know?"

After rubbing her back just a little bit more, Sonic let his hands slowly travel down to her sides and down to her butt. He resisted the urge to do the obvious, instead turning around and massaging her legs.

"Wow, you are TENSE!" said Sonic. "What were ya doin', kickin' down vault doors all day? Guess ya really need this."

Sonic spent a good amount of time on Rouge's legs. When he felt that they were well and taken care of, he moved on down to her feet. This produced even more moaning from her.

"You like that, don't ya?" said Sonic. "Yeah, I like that too! In fact, let me give ya a nickel's worth of thought: I've seen artwork of you on the internet, and I couldn't help but notice that more than a few cats like drawin' your feet, and…well…that really sugars my overdrive!"

Sonic kept rubbing Rouge's feet, causing her to keep moaning. When he pressed on a certain part of her feet, it sent a charge through her body. Sensing this, he tried to find the sweet spot. When he did, he found himself being tempted to mess around with her feet in another way, but he decided that he was better than that. Thus, Sonic kept with his usual massage. As he did, Rouge's moaning slowly became more immodest, which sent a charge down his spine. Though it felt good, he had to remind himself that his gift was meant to be really friendly, and nothing more, so he made no attempt to follow up on that impulse.

"Ready for a real thrill?" asked Sonic. "Here it comes!"

Sonic continued to work the same spot on Rouge's feet. She kept moaning, even emitting a few squeals of delight in the process. Eventually, her charge topped off, leaving her in a state of pure mellow. Taking note, he slowly decreased his speed and pressure.

"Whoo, that was somethin' else!" Sonic began drying his hands. "I hope that was as good for you as it was for me!"

Rouge – blushing by now – only responded with a nod and an "uh".

"Rouge, before I go, I wanna tell ya somethin': You're one of my favorite ladies! I'd say you're just about on target with Ames and Sal! Heck, I sometimes like ya better than chili dogs! But enough talk, I gotta boogie! Good night!"

Sonic rubbed his nose against Rouge's cheek before hopping off the bed. After putting his gloves, socks and shoes back on, he hopped off the balcony and into the night. As for Rouge, she slowly drifted off to sleep.


End file.
